The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-05-09
A TALK WITH A SCULPTOR.
How the Modern stone Cutter is Util-
lied by Great Artists.


"Just because old Michael Angelo used to
pick up a chisel and maui, and cut his
figures out of block of marble, most PEG
pie think that the same thing is done by
sculptors of the present day." remarked a
well-known sculptor the other morning.
Now don't believe we would ever have
any statues or busts if we waited for our
sculptors TO cut them out of stone. There is
a great deal of mechanical work in the
creation of statue or any other piece of art
work. All the stone cutting is done by an
artisan hired at about 81 a day. You see,
therefore, that the public never get a
glimpse of the artists handwork All
statues are made by common stone cutters
from models which, of course are wholly
created by the artist. This cutting OF mar
bic for artists is not even so difficult as the
decorations-the leaves, borders and crosses
cut upon tombStones.
In making the statue of to-day the sculp-
tor first makes a rude wooden skeleton for
his figure, or he buys one at an art dealers
establishment. He has TO use this skeleton
to support the figure, because the clay in
which it is first modelled is not capable of
sustaining its own weight. Upon this skele-
ton the figure is built by the sculptor. When
completed the clay figure is first thoroughly
dampened and oiled. Then the sculptor,
who this early in the work calls in mechan-
lcal aid, proceeds to take mold of the figure
in plaster of paris If the statue is not in
tended for duplication, the mold is taken
in two parts but if the artist wants to
put copies on the market he makes
the mold in small sections, which can
be removed without injuring the model. If
a two-part mold is taken it is thoroughly
colored with ochre inside, and then the in
terror is carefully soaped. The two parts
are set up on end and filled with liquid
plaster of paris. When this hardens, the
workman attacks the molds with chisel and
hammer and cuts them away until he
reaches the statue inside. The ochre color
ing on the inside of the mold tells when the
chiSel is nearing the concealed statue, and
care is taken to avoid injuring the cast
The soap prevents the liquid plaster of paris
from assimilating with the mold, and finally
the latter is all Clipped off as neatly as one
takes the shell from an egg.
This completes the plaster of paris statue.
Ii the artist now wishes to have it per
petuated in marble he dismisses the work
men who made the cast and calls in the
marble cutter. This last mechanic has
talisman which makes him master of the
hardest marble and the most delicate curry
ings of the artists model 1t is called
pointer" and is a delicate and accurate in
strument for measuring concave and convex
surfaces, lines, curves and distances. With
this jas a guide the mechanic places his
marble on bench beside the plaster of paris
model and proceeds to put the artists ideas
into an endurable and marketable form.
The model is reproduced with an exact
ness of detail that even its creator could not
hope to equal without the aid of the point
er." Some sculptorS, after the artisan has
finished, take the chisel and put on few
strokes to bring out the details of the skin
texture
so you see," concluded the sculptor after
narratlng the above details, 'the sculptor of
the present day seldom uses the chisel.
know one sculptor who used to be marble
cutter, and he told me that his mechanical
knowledge was valueless from an artistic
standpoint"